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Tuesday, August 7, 2012

THE ULTIMATE CARAMELIZED PEACH UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

STARTING OVER: Step 5 (Common Cause)

The next variation which their visit afforded was produced by the entrance of servants with cold meat, cake, and a variety of all the finest fruits in season… There was now employment for the whole party; for though they could not all talk, they could all eat; and the beautiful pyramids of grapes, nectarines, and peaches soon collected them round the table.

- Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

His fingers find hers and entwine gently and they lie there, still and silent, for just a second or two. She sighs heavily and rolls towards him, kicking off the twisted sheet. He groans and murmurs something too low for her to hear. “What time is it?” she whispers. With his free hand he fumbles for the alarm and she perceives the tiny light of the clock flick on and then off. “Two,” he moans, releasing her hand and flipping over onto his back. “Go back to sleep. It’s too early for coffee.”

This is the second night in a row, yet not the first since the beginning of this adventure, they’ve been awakened by their dreams, dreams of cream-colored cabinets, countertops in marble and wood; dreams bordering on nightmares of making decisions, choosing dishwashers and ovens, drawing and redrawing floor plans; stools and faucets swirl through their brains, mocking them, terrifying. If anything can go wrong, it certainly will in the maze of their dreams.

By day, the search and planning is near to thrilling, exciting in the flipping through catalogues and choosing this design and that cabinet. Watching their very clever son create their kitchen on his computer screen, a three-dimensional plan that allows them to walk through the room, stand behind sink and stovetop as if they are cooking, sidle up to the bar and practically slide onto a stool (they can almost smell the food cooking) is absolutely thrilling! Yet at night, while they sleep, the stress, the doubts, the fear of failure come to life and haunt them both as they toss and turn and images of rogue kitchens chase them through dark alleys and laugh at their failings.

Afternoons, son and I, sitting side by side on the sofa, finalize the plan, adding handles to the cabinets, choosing sink and dishwasher (Hallelujah! Finally a dishwasher after two years of privation!) and faucet… he so wants to be architect, designer and chef de chantier, supervisor of renovations, that he has convinced us to allow him to design the kitchen and bathroom, order everything from Ikea and Leroy Merlin and do it ourselves. Our purpose was to renovate this apartment for the least cost, doing most of the work ourselves, from the parquet and flooring, from the knocking down of walls and putting in doorways to the installation of kitchen and bath that this may work out for the best. With the help of his brother who recently spent a year in New Orleans rebuilding houses in the Lower Ninth Ward, as if in preparation for renovating our own home, and a few of his friends, this might just turn out fine.

Yet the dreams materialize, waking us in the night exhausted and drained, waking us in the morning wondering if we are making the right choices. But we know we are. We see the livingroom come to life as the dividing wall falls; we see the beauty of the raw wood appear as we yank off carpeting and scrape away glue; we admire the elements of our future kitchen, brush our fingertips across surfaces, slide imaginary cakes in the shiny new oven and dream of moving in. Thoughts of our rough night dissipate as we pull on work gloves and grab tools. This project that we have made our own, a project shared with our sons who, now adults, participate as equals, bringing knowledge, experience and ideas to the table, sitting with us and discuss, argue, measure and count, is the next step in Starting Over.

Our apartment project, Our Great Adventure, defines our summer and carries us towards autumn. The mild weather is helping us along by making working conditions if not pleasant at least bearable. But this is the project we needed as a family, a common cause, something that brings us together, working together with, at the end, something we can all be proud of, something that contains a part of each of us. A project shared, starting off the next phase of our lives, four adults now off to conquer the world separately and individually, bringing us together, keeping us together.

And while the men work, I spend time at home with Marty, watching over him and keeping his needs met. And I bake for the guys. And what better than an old family favorite, a stunning Caramelized Peach Upside Down Cake, the cake itself light, fluffy and moist, the peaches tender, sweet and fruity mingling with a delicate caramel which only heightens, never overpowers, the magnificent flavor of fresh, seasonal peaches, a favorite fruit.

Peaches, peaches, glorious peaches! My childhood was punctuated by peaches eaten on the front porch, perched in the tree shading my parents’ bedroom window, and sitting in the backseat of the station wagon, squished in between my battling brother and sister, on those long, long summer vacation drives up to New York. While citrus was my winter’s lifeblood, peaches were my summer passion, a love affair that wove its way between thick slices of watermelon and ice cold popsicles, nourishing me heart, body and soul.

I have never been one to eat oranges or grapefruit in May, June or July, no, I was certainly taught better than that! Citrus meant winter when there was a chill in the air and the ground crackled underfoot, when one dashed out quickly into the garage, tugging a sweater or robe tighter around one’s shoulders to grab an orange or two or a tangerine or three, braving the winter cold for the pleasure of fruit. Sadly, sadly I watched the waning of the season and the coming of spring, braced myself for that seemingly eternal period between my beloved grapefruits, oranges and clementines and the following winter when they would, once again, appear in the garage, divided by the long, long months between. During the winter I couldn’t imagine a day without citrus, plunged into the heady scent and flavor of these favorites I just couldn’t conceive of a day without. Long after the last citrus had disappeared, I waited forlornly for the following November, December, January when citrus would make its reappearance and I could heave a sigh of relief.

An apple is an excellent thing until you have tried a peach.

- George du Maurier

Yet, come summer I turned to other pleasures. Once the first stone fruit appeared on the supermarket benches or piled high, fragrant and plump, on the ramshackle wooden farmer’s stalls in service station parking lots up and down South Patrick Drive, I forgot all about those tangerines and grapefruit. Peaches, that age-old harbinger of summertime, school out, each and every day our own. Kids running wild, up and down the street, making up games as we went along, sitting in the shade of a tree in someone’s front yard with an improvised picnic for lunch. Or waiting for the metallic ting ting of the ice cream truck every afternoon, or that chorus of moms’ heads stuck out a series of back doors, yelling us in for dinner.

All grown up, I find it impossible to break such ingrained habits. Nothing has changed; citrus is still the highlight and the heart of my winter; peaches still mean summer to me. Sweet and refreshing, eaten fresh, they lose nothing in the baking, their tenderness and natural sweetness only more intense. I have been baking this perfect Caramelized Peach Upside Down Cake for twenty years and it has always been and still is my husband’s favorite for breakfast, snack and dessert. I find it impossible to resist.

Life is better than death, I believe, if only because

it is less boring and because it has fresh peaches in it.

- Alice Walker

And as this is peach season, how about a few more peach recipes, both savory and sweet?

Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Have ready a deep round cake pan 8 ½ to 8 ¾ inches (21 ½ to 22 cm); I prefer using a nonstick pan.

For the caramel, cream 4 tablespoons (60 g) of the softened butter with the brown sugar and a pinch of ground nutmeg until smooth, blended and creamy. Using a spatula, spread evenly in the cake pan all the way to the edges.

Peel and pit the peaches and slice into approximately half-inch (one cm) wide or slightly larger wedges. Place the peaches in the pan on top of the brown suger-butter in concentric circles, pushing close together.

Prepare the cake batter by first creaming the remaining 4 tablespoons butter with the white sugar until smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating briefly after each addition until blended; beat in the vanilla. Stir the baking powder and salt into the flour and beat the flour into the batter in two additions alternating with the milk in two additions, scraping down the sides as necessary. The batter should be well blended, smooth and creamy.
Pour the batter over the peaches in the cake pan.

Bake the cake for about 35 minutes, covering the cake loosely with a square of aluminum foil after about 25 minutes when the cake is browned. The cake is done when the center is set and firm and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. The caramel should be bubbling a bit around the edges.

Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool on a rack for 10 minutes. At the end of 10 minutes, carefully slide the blade of a knife around the edges to loosen, place a serving platter or cake plate upside down inverted on top of the cake pan and, protecting your hands, grab both the pan and the cake plate firmly and flip over (invert) so the cake is flipped upside down – the cake now on the platter and the caramel side up – and gently lift off the pan. Allow to cool before serving.

We love the cake as is, son claimed it better with a bit of whipped cream.

Yes...I also enjoy peaches and other stone fruit in the summer months. So wonderful in cakes and pies or just alone in their natural sweet state. I love baking upside-down cakes. So much fun to flip them over and see how the fruit makes it on the turn;)

Ooo I can say imagine how you feel Jamie, since it is really not too long ago that we went through the same exciting ordeal.. ;) That kitchen of yours is gonna be a beauty! I can tell already... And I'm sure it saves a lot of costs this way too.. I also do remember the sleepless nights and the endless tossing and turning. It'll be over at some point and all will be well in the world. Now that cake looks to die for too!

We must have been thinking along the same lines recently - I just made a peach pie today because I've been craving this fruit for the past couple of weeks. This cake looks delicious and love that you caramelize the peaches...

And the photos of the construction work brings back memories I don't want to think about. Hours and hours and hours of painting and scraping and touching-up and repainting. And recarpeting. I'm so glad it's underway for you but I'm so glad I'm not there... Because of the memories and all ;)

Renovations can be so hectic....even simple paint jobs can turn into a nightmare.I can completely understand your anxiety....but it is going to turn out beautifully. I can't wait to see the final effect.

What an exciting project! I love the planning and finally getting started. I always wish I could skip the hard work part, but when it's done, it's so great. Can't wait to see your "after" photos. And, what a great cake to keep everyone's energy up. I have more baking with peaches to do before the season ends!

I loved seeing the design you and your son are mapping out for the kitchen - it's beautiful! I'm so excited for you, Jamie! I'm also excited to see the progress as it comes along! Having said that..I love upside down cakes, but have never made one with peach. You and Lora have convinced me to via both beauties! xo

That peachy cake is ideal for your sentiments if you're feeling a bit upside down, Jamie, plus an ideal boost for the men! Bravo on all of your planning and designing during these exciting times. Great to see it all come together.

I've seen the progress photos on your facebook Jamie! things are coming along and I felt similarly when we were renovating our place-and I felt like I was constantly coated with a layer of fine white dust too :P

However, I didn't have anything as delicious as this caramelised peach tart!

How wonderful the new place is a real family project. The flat will be so much more meaningful when it's finished. My local farmers market is bursting with juicy peaches the size of a cat's head. This look perfect. I am week in the knees for peach/caramel combination.

Oh Jamie, the dishwasher will be a life-changing event ;o) Don't know how I survived the 9 years between leaving my parents' house to acquiring my own!! Can't wait to see the "after" pics of your new digs. Have had a craving for upside down cakes lately & am a little bit in love with your peach version :)